The Infinite Happiness is a feature-length postcard.  Documentarians Ila Bêka and Louise Lemoine practically exclaim, “wish you were here” as they show viewers amazing architectural achievements within Copenhagen’s 8 House.

Based on that reference, you may think The Infinite Happiness is a frivolous elaboration on someone’s vacation footage.  The postcard angle actually works for the doc because Bêka and Lemoine are showing movie goers a different lifestyle unseen by most.  The 8 House – shaped like the infinity symbol – is a sequestered community with apartments and areas designated for recreational uses inside a futuristic shell.  It’s as if we’re visiting a camouflaged reality or another planet.  With some floors so high off the earth, the 8 House almost resembles a space station.  It’s a film that allows our eyes to wander and drink in the unique landscape and mingle with commoners.

The film is divided up into vignettes made up of short sit-ins with employees, residents, pets, and environmental canvases.  While some of these segments are revealing through visuals and conversations, some of these moments (most notably any confrontation with animals) draw these scenes out past their prime.  The filmmakers have dropped in lighthearted music tracks to disguise how redundant these bits are, but movie goers can still see the doc’s desperation to find context.

The Infinite Happiness will occupy your time well enough, but this glamourous film is mainly something you throw on in the background while you carry out chores.  It makes you take a break from monotony to admire a dream.  If The Infinite Happiness does end up fading away, the 8 House could find new life in some segments by re-editing the clips into commercials to promote vacancies.

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Addison Wylie: @AddisonWylie